Keeping the Faith
by ernnnnn
Summary: Finn Hudson leads a normal life, keeping the past in the past where it belongs. When someone returns he never thought he'd see again, will he be up for the challenge they bring? Finn/Rachel, but not always centered on them. Quite a few other pairings too.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: This is my first story! Please tell me what you think, advice is welcome!

Finn Hudson was a routine guy. Sure, there were days when he had uncommon things to do - doctor's appointments, overseeing public events, and the like – but for the most part he had a stable routine set up every day. Each morning he'd wake up before dawn for his job at one of the top radio stations in New York City: no one was going to wake up those early morning commuters like DJ Finnie D. After playing that week's hottest tracks, he'd finish the morning shift and begin to prepare the next morning's lineup. After lunch with some of the other DJ's and producers, he'd help plan any upcoming concerts, guest spots, or other public events before heading home in the early afternoon. He loved being home by three every day. It gave him time to take a nap, relax, and maybe even start dinner before his beautiful wife of three years, Rachel, came home.

Rachel. He couldn't help but smile every time he thought of her. They had gotten married just out of college. He, of course, had wanted to marry her sooner, but she had told him that she wouldn't settle down until she had a degree, or had reached her dream. Turns out it was rather hard to focus all your energy on reaching your dream when you were a full time college student. They both received their degrees in four years, and were married the fall after graduation. Not long after, Rachel's dream came true. She was picked to star in a new Broadway musical by an up-and-coming producer. From then on, her ratings and reputation skyrocketed, and she was never short of a job. Though being a Broadway star meant long rehearsals, shows, and after-parties, she always made time for Finn. She loved him dearly, and, recalling the ups and downs of their relationship in high school, did not want to let him go ever again.

The day that flipped everything upside-down started like any other day. Finn woke up to the sound of music playing on his alarm, and quickly shut it off so as to not wake Rachel from her slumber. He took a quick shower, dressed, kissed Rachel on the forehead, and headed out the door. He only lived a couple of blocks from the station, so he walked to work every morning, usually grabbing a donut from a street vendor. At the station, the first couple of hours of music went by pretty quickly. He was chatting with one of the other DJ's when the office phone rang in the room next door.

The sound of phones ringing in the station was not unusual. Hundreds of people called in each day, requesting to hear both new tracks and some oldies. However, it was pretty rare for the office phone to ring before 10 AM, so Finn and the other DJ, Kyle Jenson, paused their conversation and glanced at the office through the window separating them.

The secretary, Wanda, bustled in to the office and answered the phone. Losing interest, the two DJs went back to their conversation. A few seconds later, Wanda interrupted them.

"Finn? You have a caller wishing to speak to you!" she called through the window.

Finn glanced at the timer telling them how long they had until they were back on air. It was counting down from 23 seconds. He swiveled his chair back to face Wanda. "I'm about to be on the air, can you take a message? Thanks Wanda, you're the best!" He shot her a grin.

Wanda rolled her eyes and went back to the phone. The timer beeped, allowing Finn and Kyle to get ready to be back on the air.

"Alright everybody, how was that for Adele's new single?" Kyle asked into the microphone.

"I love Adele, she's and absolutely amazing singer," Finn said.

"Same here, I can't believe how good every single one of her CD's have been."

"I know! They're great. Well folks, that's about all we have for today. We have a couple more songs for you, and then Mandy and Sam will be taking over for the midday shift. This is DJs Finnie D and Killer Kyle, signing off!"

Kyle pressed a button, and they were off the air. Finn leaned back in his chair and yawned. No matter how long he had been at this job, he didn't think he'd ever get used to being up so early every day. After sitting for a few minutes, he and Kyle began cleaning up their workstation, throwing away their breakfast wrappers and coffee cups, and grabbing their folders to plan the next day's songs. He was just grabbing his bag and heading towards one of the conference rooms when he passed Wanda in the hall.

"Hey, Wanda!" She stopped from where she was going in a door and poked her head back out.

"Yeah, Finn?"

"What did that caller want?"

"Oh!" She came out into the hall. "They wanted to meet you for lunch. Said it was very important. I checked your schedule and saw that you didn't have anything, so I said you could meet her."

"Her? Who- did you get her name?"

Wanda frowned. "No, I asked for it. She said to tell you it was 'an old friend'. I don't know. But she's meeting you at 11:45 at Fred's Diner." And with that, she walked back into the office.

Finn scrunched up his forehead in thought. 'Who was this mystery person that wanted to meet me for lunch?' He tried to think if there were any events that this might be involved with, but nothing came to mind. Then he remembered what Wanda had said – an old friend. He thought for a minute. No one came to mind. It could be anyone from college, or maybe even high school. He thought back for a minute to glee club, and smiled. He missed it – that's why he had taken his DJ name from when he, Puck, and Mercedes had sung Good Vibrations. But those days were over… he hadn't seen most of the glee club in quite a while.

He glanced at his watch. He had about an hour and a half before he needed to leave. He headed toward the conference room to finish his work with Kyle before his lunch meeting. Concentrating on the music, he pushed all thoughts of this mystery woman out of his mind.

An hour and twenty minutes later, he was headed down the street towards Fred's Diner for his lunch meeting. He was early, so he took his time. Strolling along the walk with his hands in his pockets, his mind drifted back to the identity of the person he was meeting. He wasn't sure why, but he had a strong feeling that it was someone from glee club. A woman – so that knocked out half them. Brittany? No, she wouldn't be so mysterious. Santana? She would be mysterious, but he had seen her and Brittany at one of Rachel's performances, so he didn't think that it would be her either. Definitely not Rachel, he mused – she would be much more obvious and open if she wanted to go to lunch with him.

It wasn't Quinn. He had a feeling she wouldn't pick a place like Fred's Diner. She'd be more of a Serendipity 3 kind of girl. He also quickly knocked out Mercedes, Lauren, and Tina. There was only one other girl it could be from glee club. But that was a long shot – to his knowledge, she hadn't had much contact, if any, with any of the rest of the glee members since that year… He shook his head. He didn't want those memories coming back right now. Especially if he wanted to be prepared for this lunch meeting.

He arrived at the diner, pulled open the door, and walked in. He stood there for a second, looking around, hoping whoever was meeting him would greet him if they were already here. When no one did, he found his way to a corner booth, and grabbed a menu from the table. A waitress ambled over, and he ordered a coffee. Checking his watch, he saw that he was just a few minutes early than he was expected.

The waitress brought back the coffee and asked for his order, but he decided to wait until his guest arrived. Taking a sip, he continued to study the menu, trying to decide between Belgian waffles or sausage and eggs. He was so engrossed in the menu that he didn't notice the woman walk up to his table. She stood there for a minute watching his puzzled expression, and finally cleared her throat. Finn froze, and immediately glanced up. When he did, his jaw dropped and his eyes widened.

"Hi, Finn."


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note: Thanks for reading! This is a pretty quick update. They won't always be this quick, but I'll try to keep the updates pretty regular. Let me know what you think! Warning for a bit of foul language in this chapter!

"Holy shit." The words tumbled out of Finn's mouth before he could stop them. It was her. The last person from glee club he would have thought would contact him.

Erin Braham.

She shot him a small smile at his exclamation and sat down in the booth, taking another menu from the table. He sat in shocked silence as he watched her scan the menu.

"Hmm. There are so many delicious-sounding things. What are you getting, Finn?"

He shook himself out of his stupor to stammer an answer. "Uh, b-belgian waffles."

She nodded. "I forgot how much you like breakfast foods, even during other meals. But I'm not really in the mood for breakfast…" she trailed off, glancing back at the menu.

The waitress appeared at Finn's elbow and he jumped slightly.

"What'll it be, dears?" she asked in a bored voice.

"I'll have the grilled cheese meal, with a water to drink, please." She shot a glance at Finn. Seeing him incapable of speech, she continued. "And he'd like the Belgian Waffles, and I think another cup of coffee. Thanks!"

The waitress gathered up the menus and headed towards the kitchen. Erin reached into her bag and grabbed her phone, scrolling through it to check her messages. Finn took this momentary silence to process what exactly was happening.

Sitting across from him was the girl practically no one had heard from since their sophomore year in college. All of a sudden all of those memories he tried to suppress came rushing back to him. He closed his eyes for a moment and let them consume him.

He remembered the first day that Erin had come to glee club. She was the new student at McKinley High, having just moved to Lima from North Carolina for her senior year. After hearing her interests, the principal had suggested that she try out for glee club. As soon as she had walked in the room she caught everyone's interest. New students were not necessarily a rarity, but one so willing to join a club that was ridiculed daily? Not so common.

He remembered the song she had sung for her audition. A twangy Lady Antebellum song that fit her voice perfectly. The boys, he could remember, had taken an immediate liking to her, with her being so sweet to everyone. He himself had flirted with her for a bit, as there was always something about a new girl that interested everyone. However, he soon got over those superficial feelings, wanting to be true to Rachel. While she became fast friends with the boys, it took a little longer for some of the girls to come around. Rachel, of course, was worried for her solos. A few of the other girls were worried for their boyfriends. However, she soon won over everyone with her bubbly, southern personality and contagious smile.

Time passed, and soon there was a new couple in glee club. After being dumped by Lauren, Puck had immediately tried to get with the new girl. Erin had politely declined, however, and was turned off by his aggressive advances. After a particular episode that provoked Erin to slap him and call him a pig, Puck seemed to sober up. After discussing it with Finn, he immediately apologized to Erin, and they began a tentative friendship. It wasn't long after that he asked her to the Winter Formal, and from then on, they were a couple.

Their relationship was strong, and lasted the trials of graduation and going to separate colleges. It was hard as a glee club to keep in contact with everyone, as well. Though the beginning was hard, they powered through it and remained close.

Then one day during the second semester of their sophomore year, they all got together. There was a party at Sam's fraternity house, and they all had a free weekend, so they planned on hanging out. They all met up for a fun night of drinking, dancing, and catching up with each other. After a while, the boys headed outside for some air and to get a few more drinks. After messing around a little in the woods near the frat house, they headed back inside. No one noticed until it was time to leave that Puck wasn't with them.

After asking around, searching the house and the nearby woods, and calling his cell phone, the group concluded that he had passed out somewhere, and that he'd call in the morning. They were all staying with Artie in his apartment, as he went to the same university as Sam. Though Erin was worried, she didn't make a big fuss about it. Puck had passed out before, and he'd always called her the next morning.

However, no call came. After calling his cell phone multiple times, along with the frat house's phone, the group was sufficiently worried enough to call the police. Within a few hours, police were questioning everyone in the glee club, focusing on the guys. They had dogs searching the area around the frat house, and they had a few trails, but they all ended abruptly by the street. They concluded that Puck was most likely forced into a vehicle and was taken from the premises. When they were told, Erin had broken down, and was leaning on Mercedes and Quinn for support, while the rest of the group just stared at the officer. They had never imagined that badass Puck would have been kidnapped.

The search went on for weeks, and eventually months. By June, they concluded that Puck was most likely dead. Erin was inconsolable. His family had held a memorial service, and the whole glee club was in attendance. It was especially hard for three of the glee members: Finn, because Puck was his best friend; Quinn, because she had had a child with Puck; and Erin, because they had been in love.

The next few days were tough. Members of the group constantly checked in on Finn, Quinn, and Erin. Finn and Quinn seemed to be faring a little better, being able to eat and sleep, but otherwise not doing much of anything. Erin, on the other hand, was a different story. She stared out of her window all the time, refusing to listen to anyone who tried to comfort her. Finn had believed in the back of his mind that she thought Puck was still alive.

Then, a week after the memorial service, she was gone. Just like that. Her hotel room had been cleaned out, her belongings missing. Mercedes had called Erin's roommate at school, who told her that she had come back to the room to find everything that belonged to Erin gone. Her parents informed them that they had not spoken to their daughter since before the memorial service. When Santana tried to call Erin's phone, they found it had been disconnected.

That was the last anyone had seen of her since then. She never returned to her university, never contacted anyone, including her parents.

Now mourning the loss of two of their glee members, the rest of the club moved on with their lives: growing up, getting degrees, getting married.

Finn let out a long breath he didn't realize he had been holding. Those memories still hurt, even today. He missed his best friend, but the fact that Erin had willingly left their group hurt just as bad. There was a reason he kept those memories locked up. He felt his eyes water slightly, but quickly blinked them away.

Taking another deep breath, he slowly raised his head to look Erin in the eyes. She was gazing at him with a slightly concerned expression. He took a moment to assess her appearance. Gone was the bubbly, happy-go-lucky girl that he once knew. She seemed thinner, older, and more tired. He wondered where she had gone all those years. But that wasn't the question that was first on his mind.

"Why are you here?" It came out a bit harsher than he meant it.

A look of sadness flashed on her face for a split-second at his tone. It was quickly masked, however, by a determined expression. She squared her shoulders and prepared herself for his reaction to the seemingly innocent request.

"I need your help."

Author's Note: Sorry this is just a bunch of explanation, but it is necessary to know to understand the plot! I wanted to get it out of the way early so that you aren't confused! Power through it! I'm feeling another quick update; I have the urge to keep writing! Let me know what you think!


	3. Chapter 3

Author's Note: Here's another quick update! I couldn't stop writing, this goes right with the previous chapter. Enjoy!

"_I need your help."_

Well, that wasn't what Finn had expected to hear at all. To be honest, he didn't really know what he had expected. An apology, maybe, or something like that. But this was a sincere request for help, and he knew he'd have to hear her out, even though all he wanted to do was leave. Get as far away from her and those memories as possible. Yeah, that would be nice. But he couldn't.

The truth was, he had missed her over the years. She had become a good friend, to both him and Rachel. Rachel never really talked about it, but he knew that she missed every single person from glee club. He could tell by the wistful look on her face whenever she mentioned the club. However, it was short-lived, because there was always a quick subject change whenever glee club was brought up. Neither of them wanted to upset the other with the things that had happened.

Now here was part of the cause of the despair, looking to Finn for help. He furrowed his brow, but said nothing.

Erin shifted uncomfortably under his gaze. She bit her lip, and then opened her mouth to speak. However, she was interrupted by the waitress bringing their food to them. She quietly thanked the woman, and looked back to Finn. After taking a second to think about her approach, she opened her mouth again.

"I know you have a lot of questions for me… Don't pretend that you don't. And don't pretend you aren't mad at me. I know all of you are. You deserve to be – I left at the worst possible time. So go ahead, shoot." She leaned back in her seat and grabbed a french fry, popping it into her mouth.

Finn's mouth dropped open slightly. That wasn't expected either. He didn't think she'd be so willing to answer the questions he had. He thought she'd say her bit and then be done. But here she was, giving him an opportunity to get answers for long sought-after questions that haunted the glee club. He bit the inside of his cheek, deciding what to ask first.

"Why? Why did you leave? We would have helped you through it."

Erin chewed thoughtfully for a moment, and swallowed. "I know you all would have helped me through it. But the truth was, I felt stifled. Being surrounded by everyone he knew, everyone who was close to him… It was too much. I had to get away, to clear my head, to start over again. I couldn't do that if I was around anyone who reminded me of him."

"Where did you go? You disappeared without a trace. It was like you were never there…"

"Ah, so I was successful in that, was I?" She smiled sadly, and then gestured to his plate. "You might want to eat; you don't want it to get cold."

Finn grabbed a fork and dug it into his waffle. Chewing a huge bite, he looked back up at her expectantly.

"Oh, right. Well, after I left I went back to school and stayed with my friend Jake for a few days. He helped me pack up the stuff from my dorm while Melissa wasn't there. I enrolled in another college, moved there, and began classes there next semester."

"So you've gotten a degree, huh? Did you begin teaching then? Have you just been teaching the last three years?" Teaching had been Erin's passion since high school. She wanted to teach science – it was a subject she was good at.

She shook her head. "No. When I transferred schools, I got a new major. I kept the educational science major, but also took on criminal justice."

He frowned. 'If she wasn't teaching, what was she doing? She didn't seem like the type to be a police officer…' he thought.

As if sensing his confusion, she informed him, "I joined the FBI right out of college. I've been researching and basically doing whatever they tell me for the past three years."

He was surprised. That was a very interesting development. "Wait… so are you like a spy?"

She raised an eyebrow. "Well, I guess you could put it that way. I do a lot of private investigative work. You know, planning missions and things, and then usually carrying them out."

"Wow. That's awesome," Finn stated, impressed. He would never have thought that would have been a match for her.

Erin smiled. "Thanks, Finn."

He nodded, and then thought for a second. They still hadn't gotten to the part about why she needed his help. He sat back in his seat and regarded her carefully.

"So… why do you need my help?"

Taking a deep breath, Erin wrung her hands in her lap. This was nerve-wracking. She felt that she would have the best luck in her endeavor if Finn was on board. She didn't know how it would go if he completely rejected her proposal.

"Well, because I've been working with the FBI for three years now, I've gotten pretty close to my director. He's a great mentor, and has always believed in my ability. After completing miniscule tasks easily, he promoted me to more important tasks. When I also completed those without difficulty, he asked if there was any project that I wanted to work on. I told him there was. It was the only reason I joined the FBI in the first place, and I wanted to see it through any way I could."

She looked at Finn for a minute, wondering if he had caught on yet. He still looked slightly puzzled, so she continued.

"You see, ever since that night when… uh, Noah disappeared, I've had my suspicions about the whole case. I think that the police ended their search too soon. They had barely issued a missing person's alert on the news before they declared him most likely dead. Part of the reason I left that night was because I thought – and I still think – that he is still alive. I couldn't stay around people who thought him to be dead. It would have made it hard for me to change my career path with people trying to convince me otherwise. I joined the FBI so that I could do my own research, unhindered by rules which would make confidential documents unattainable to the regular citizen."

She scanned his face, seeing a small amount of understanding in his eyes.

"Finn, I have good information that proves my theory that Noah is still alive."

A number of emotions flickered across his face: confusion, pain, surprise, excitement – and maybe a bit of hope too. He didn't know what to think. All this time, he was convinced that Puck was dead. And here was Erin, the girl who had disappeared for five years, telling him that she had information that proved otherwise. It was a lot to take in, and Finn had to remember to breathe before he passed out.

He rubbed his hand over his face. So much for the normal, routine day. "So, what? Do you need my help to go rescue him or something? I don't really get what you need me for."

She sat up a little straighter. This was good – he wasn't outright rejecting the idea of Noah still being alive. She folded her hands on the table in front of her.

"Well, sort of. But it's going to be a while before we can just go swinging in to save him. You see, when I proposed the idea to my boss, he was for it. After reading my research, he too felt that there were some discrepancies that were suspicious. However, we have a policy not to go back and open closed cases without the permission of the people who had closed it. And because of some of the reports, we don't want the police involved. He still wanted this case investigated, so he gave me terms I have to follow to carry out the job. For one, I won't be assigned any other agents to help me. This way he can report my job as confidential, and no other agents have to get involved."

"So then how are you gonna do this? I know you want my help, but I'm no smarty FBI agent."

She shook her head. "You don't have to be. I just have to find people who are willing to help me, and will be discrete about it. I figured that you, along with the rest of the glee club, would be perfect for the job. You were all close to Noah, and we are – were – a tight knit group, you know, before everything happened. I believe we can work together and find him."

Finn sighed. "What were the other terms you had to meet? You only mentioned that you had to find your own help."

"Well, the other one wasn't really a term… He said that whatever money, residence, or vehicle we needed, we could have for the job. He trusts me, and wants me to see the project through. To do that, I need help, and I have to make sure that the people who help me are fully reimbursed for helping me."

Oh. Well he wasn't expecting that. That sort of put a twist on things.

"You'll be paid, of course. You won't lose your job – we can write an official letter requesting leave from your job. You'll have a place to stay – we don't think that it's wise to remain in your current home if you decide to help. This means that you'll have to cut off a lot of communication from your friends and colleagues. We'll be able to help you smooth everything over. You'll have access to vehicles, as well as whatever else you need to live comfortably." She bit her bottom lip. "Are you okay? I know it's a lot to ask. You seem overwhelmed."

"Oh, really? No, it's completely normal to have a friend who you haven't seen in years suddenly show up in your life, requesting you to drop everything to chase after a theory she has about her missing boyfriend, also known as my best friend," he spat. He watched her duck her head and tuck a lock of hair behind her ear. He was frustrated and overwhelmed, but he didn't want to take it out completely on her. He sort of understood why she ran away all those years ago, and where she was coming from now.

He was beginning to get a headache. "Look Erin, I'm sorry. I'm just… it's a lot to take in right now."

She nodded, not looking at him.

He sat there and looked at her, thinking things over.

She looked up when she heard him speak again. "Can I think it over? You know, like tonight?"

Erin nodded vehemently. "Of course! Yes! Yes, I think you should. Don't jump into anything right now. I understand I'm asking a lot of you. Go home, discuss it with Rachel. She is obviously invited too. Tell her everything I told you." She reached into her bag, pulling out a card. Sliding it across the table, she said, "Here. Call me when you've made your decision."

He nodded and took the card, slipping it into his pocket. Then he paused. "Wait – how did you know that I was still with Rachel?"

She gave him a small smile. "I may have been nonexistent to you all of those years, but that doesn't mean that I didn't keep up with your lives as best as I could. I followed Rachel's career from the beginning. I read in a bio that she was married to New York City radio personality DJ Finnie D. Of course, I knew long before then that you would get married. You were made for each other."

With that, she stood up and gathered her things, leaving a few bills on the table. "I got you covered, Finn. Thanks for meeting me. Call me, when you – you know."

And then she was gone.

Finn sat there for a moment, staring at the spot she had just been. Where the hell had this all come from? Why interrupt his normal, happy life with something so insane?

Feeling fidgety, he slid out of the booth. He took the long way home, pondering everything that had just happened. He was grateful for the few hours of alone-time he had before Rachel came home – there was a lot to process before he told her the news. 

Author's Note: Alright, so I really don't know exactly how being an FBI agent works. So I'm taking some liberties and making up my own ideas of what they do and the resources they have. Hope you're enjoying the products of my restless mind! Let me know what you think!


	4. Chapter 4

"Ms. Berry. Ms. Berry- Rachel!"

Rachel's head shot up, and she looked to the director from her spot on the stage.

"Lost in thought, I presume?"

Rachel grinned sheepishly, and nodded. "Yeah, sorry Mr. Brockett. The bar scene, right?"

"Yes. Places everyone! If we can rehearse this last scene we'll be done for the day! And… action!"

Rachel immediately fell into character, submerging herself in the identity of Felicity Worsley, a struggling singer trying to make a name for herself. It all sounded so familiar – it reminded Rachel greatly of her own struggle to become a star. They were only a couple weeks away from opening night, and Rachel was already well-prepared. She knew all of her lines, and could do every song in her sleep. In fact, this was one of the scenes that she was most prepared for – mostly because it was the hardest song. She had spent countless nights practicing until she got the notes just right. For her work ethic, her boss had been most impressed. But that didn't mean he'd let up on her in rehearsal.

After speaking her lines to the patrons in the bar, she launched into her song. Half-dancing and half-walking the familiar path around the stage, she gave her whole self to every note. One of her favorite parts of this scene was the fact that whenever they rehearsed it, cast and crew alike would pause in what they were doing to watch and listen. She loved the attention she received, and craved the feeling of astounding her audiences. The song was coming to an end, and she prepared herself for the final note, centering herself on the stage. As she belted it out, holding the note for an extraordinary amount of time, she could hear applause and whistles coming from a few crew members to the side of the stage. As she finished, the curtain dropped, signaling the end of the scene.

She grinned, and thanked the people who had congratulated her. She didn't leave the stage however, and waited for the curtain to come back up so everyone could get their schedule for the next day. The red curtain rose before her, and she patiently awaited instructions.

"Great job, everyone. Fantastic performance, Ms. Berry. Alright, tomorrow morning we'll be working on some of the minor scenes in the show, which means we don't need the main stars until noon. Have a good evening everyone, see you tomorrow."

Rachel clapped along with everyone, and then headed to her dressing room. She grabbed her bag and checked her phone. 4:00. They were done early today, which was a rarity. Happily thinking of the extra time she would get to spend with Finn, she decided to walk home instead of calling a cab. It was a beautiful September day, and she didn't want to waste it.

Since finally getting her big break after graduation, she always had offers to star in Broadway shows. The name 'Rachel Berry' had become a household name. Well, for show enthusiasts at least. After marrying Finn, she had decided to keep Berry as her stage name because she was so new to the Broadway scene. However, her legal name was Rachel Hudson, and she was proud of it. She was so glad that they were able to overcome all of the trials they faced in high school to be where they were today.

Much like it was in high school, Rachel's determination and drive were off the charts. She cared too much about her stardom to even think of slacking off or not trying hard. She didn't want to give up her hard work for anything. She was persistent in the things she wanted, whether it was a part in a show or a change in the script.

A half hour later, she had arrived home. Unlocking the door, Rachel stepped inside to find the home silent. She shut the door and put her things away, and checked the rooms for Finn. He wasn't in the kitchen or living room, nor was he in the study. Really, the study was a place for their music – for Finn to listen to new music and for Rachel to practice. She then noticed the bedroom door was cracked, and tip-toed over. She carefully opened the door wider to find Finn asleep on the bed.

Rachel smiled at his sleeping form. He was just so cute. Sliding off her shoes, she climbed up on to the bed, crawling over to where he lay on his side facing the wall. She nestled herself behind his back quietly, trying not to wake him, and wrapped an arm around his waist. He shifted, and she froze. Whoops.

He rolled over sleepily and looked at her. "Hey," he whispered, smiling.

She smiled back as he rolled onto his back, wrapping an arm around her and pulling her closer. Laying her head on his chest, she said, "Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you."

"It's okay. I needed to wake up anyway. How was your day?"

She shrugged. "It was fine. Normal. Sang my favorite song, but you know, just everyday stuff."

"You've got the life," he chuckled.

"What about you? How was your day? Pretty regular?"

He hesitated. "Uh- yeah, the morning was pretty normal. I had a lunch meeting though, so that was unusual."

"Oh yeah? Who were you meeting with? Someone with the station?"

"Well… No, not exactly. It was actually an old friend."

Rachel glanced at him, instantly curious. "Who? Do I know them?"

Finn scratched his head. "Yeah, you do. Pretty well, in fact."

"Who is it? Is it someone from glee club?" He noticed the way her eyes lit up at the mention of her favorite club.

He nodded. She bit her lip in thought, and then looked mischievously at him.

"Want to make a game out of it? If I guess who it is in five guesses, you have to make dinner. Something delicious. And if I get it wrong, I'll make you whatever you want. You game?"

He laughed, and nodded again. He knew he'd be getting dinner made for him tonight.

"Alright. Hmm… Kurt?"

"No. He's my half brother. We see him at Christmas and stuff, and he and Blaine came to your last show. He wouldn't be so secretive."

"Right. Santana?"

"Nah."

"Well there goes the fellow New Yorkers. Quinn?"

"No, she's in Los Angeles, remember?"

"Damn. Uh… Artie?"

"Nope. Last try, Rach. Looks like you'll be making me dinner!" He grinned.

"Grr. Alright. Hmm…Mercedes?"

He shook his head. "Nope to all, you lose! For dinner, I want pasta. And breadsticks. Yum."

Rachel huffed. "Fine. But who was this mystery friend? You have to tell me!"

"Alright. But I bet you won't believe me." He eyed her carefully.

"Yes I will. Just tell me."

He paused. "Erin Braham."

The shock was evident on her face. That was definitely not the name she expected to hear. She had expected pretty much any other name, even Mr. Schuester.

"You're joking."

"I'm not. I said you wouldn't believe me."

"You- you talked to her? No one's heard from her in years!"

"I know. And yeah, she called me, and asked to meet me for lunch."

"What did she want?"

"Well- it's kind of complicated. Let's go in the living room and I'll tell you."

She raised an eyebrow, but followed him into the living room. Was it just her or was he acting a little strange? Trying to push it out of her mind, she settled herself next to Finn on the couch, facing him.

"Spill."

"Uh, right. Well. When she left, she actually went to another school. She got her degree in science education, but also got one in criminal justice. When she graduated, instead of becoming a teacher, she joined the FBI."

"What? That doesn't sound like her at all."

"I know. Well, she told me that she was now at the level where she could work on her own projects." He paused, trying to figure out how to word what he was going to say next. "The project she's working on would mess with a police report, so she can't get any other FBI agents involved. She has to hire outside help."

Rachel wrinkled her forehead in confusion. "But why did she tell you this? I don't really understand."

"Well, the reason she told me this was because she needs my help. In fact, she needs all of our help – the whole glee club."

"What? Why us?"

Finn fidgeted. "Well, she has good information pointing toward the theory that after all these years, Puck is still alive. And we're the only ones she can trust to help her find him."

Rachel's jaw dropped. "You're joking."

"Again, no, I'm serious. And so is she. She needs our help because she can't get other FBI agents involved, or the police. She said she'd be able to take care of our jobs and we'll get reimbursed for the time we spend helping her. We'd have to live in a different place for a while, and not talk to many people, because of security or something. I dunno."

"So she expects us to just drop everything and help her when we haven't so much as heard from her in five years?" There was a hint of anger in Rachel's voice.

"Yeah, I guess it sounds like that. But come on, Rach. She was our good friend, and she needs our help. You don't turn your back on friends."

"So you're seriously considering doing this?" she asked incredulously.

He shrugged. "I thought about it the whole time after I talked to her. And… I think I want to help. I'll get to be like a spy, so that will be cool. But that's not why I'm doing it. I mean, if there is even a slight chance that I'll see Puck again…"

Rachel frowned, and put a hand on his shoulder. "Look, Finn, I know it was tough losing him. But you can't just put your whole life on hold just to go on a wild goose chase! It's not logical!"

"Screw logic, Rachel. I have this gut feeling that I have to do this. I can't just stand by and ignore it – I at least have to try."

"So you're choosing this insane idea over me?" There was a quietness in Rachel's voice that both scared and frustrated Finn.

"I'm not choosing anything over you. You can come too. It's not like it'll be forever! A few months, maybe a year at the most-"

"But don't you see, Finn? I can't give up a year. I have shows to do! What would happen to my career if I suddenly disappeared?" She looked at him exasperatedly.

He sighed, and ran a hand over his face and through his hair.

"I… I'm not changing my mind, Rach."

Rachel looked at him and saw the obvious determination reflected in his eyes. She turned away, biting at her thumbnail and closing her eyes. He stayed still, waiting for her to say something. After thinking for a minute, she turned back to him. Placing one hand on his shoulder and the other on his cheek, she looked him in the eyes.

"While I may not understand or even like your decision, I'm not going to stop you from doing what you have to do. I love you, and I'll support you. Even if I'm not happy about it."

Finn reached up tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear. "You seem really calm about this all of a sudden. Why?"

"I learned in high school that I can't control everything you do or our relationship will fall apart. I don't want that to happen, so I'm just going to try to let things be."

Finn smiled, and leaned his forehead to rest on hers. "Thank you. That means a lot, really. I love you."

He kissed her deeply. Ending the kiss, she wrapped her arms around him and squeezed him tight. Pulling back, she looked up at him with a smile.

"Now, I believe I owe you a pasta dinner?"

Author's Note: Thanks for reading! Review and let me know what you think! I won't be updating for a few days – I have a final exam coming up that I really need to concentrate on. There is a possibility of another update this weekend, but don't count on it. Hope you're enjoying the story so far!


	5. Chapter 5

Author's Note: Finally done with summer school! Thank goodness! Thanks for being patient, enjoy!

"Here's a new song from an up-and-coming artist, Lauren Patterson! Call the 'Hit-or-Miss' hotline to let us know what you think!"

Finn leant back in his chair and took a large sip of coffee. He had been up late, uh, 'hanging out' with Rachel, and then hadn't been able to fall asleep because of the thoughts racing through his head. He had made his decision, but was second-guessing himself, and therefore kept putting off the inevitable phone call.

He glanced at the clock. He had about 20 more minutes until his shift ended. Kyle wasn't there today, so he figured now would be as good a time as ever. Grabbing his wallet, Finn pulled out Erin's card, and picked up his cell phone. He dialed the number, frowning at the unfamiliar 202 area code. Making a mental note to ask her about that later, he nervously waited for her to pick up.

"Braham."

"Wha- oh, Erin. Hey."

"Finn? Hi, what's up?"

Finn hesitated, and glanced around, feeling very secretive. "I've made my decision."

She sounded surprised. "Already? Wow, alright. What is it?"

"I'm in."

He could practically hear the smile in Erin's voice. "Really? Oh Finn, that's excellent! I knew I could count on you! This is great, you're seriously going to be such a huge help. Thank you!"

"No problem. I don't think I could live with myself if I don't at least try, you know?"

"I understand, I do. Now, did you tell Rachel? What does she think?"

"Er… Yeah, I told her. She- she can't leave her career right now. It's too important for her to just give up without notice."

"Yeah, I understand. I knew she'd be hard to tear away from Broadway, but I had to try." Though she tried to sound nonchalant about Rachel's decision, Finn noticed slight disappointment in her voice. "Please tell her that if she ever changes her mind to give me a call, alright?"

"Sure thing. So now what? I'm like a spy now, right?"

Erin laughed. "Yeah, I guess you are. Well, let's see… It's Wednesday right? Finish out the week, and your boss will have an excuse letter tomorrow. If you can pack and be ready by Saturday, you can move in and then we'll be able to get started quickly."

"Cool. I'm sure I'll be able to be ready by Saturday."

"Perfect. Well I'll give you a call Friday to let you know the details. Thanks again Finn!"

"Yep. Talk to you Friday. Bye."

Finn hung up the phone and glanced around the room. He was going to miss this job while he was gone. At least the FBI would help him keep it. He felt an excitement for Saturday: it was a new, thrilling chapter in his otherwise routine life. He grabbed a piece of paper from the desk and began to make a list of things he needed to pack.

"No. No, no no. That look is all wrong for this part. You're going for modern chic, am I mistaken? Well, this looks hideous. Not at all what you need. Let's see." He pulled rifled through the rack, pulling off a few different dresses. "Try this one for the dinner scene, this one for the street scene, and _this_ is what would be perfect for the final meeting. THAT is modern chic, my dear."

Kurt Hummel was good at his job. So good, in fact, that he had won multiple awards. Though he loved Broadway and singing, he had found his passion in fashion. Taking courses in college, he had worked his way to becoming one of the best costume designers and consultants for Broadway shows. His costumes were exquisite, and fit the themes and moods perfectly. And he was so likeable that oftentimes, directors would put him in their shows as an extra, or give him a line or two. He was quite content with his job – he loved designing pieces and putting together outfits for the cast members. Sometimes he even took his talents to the real world: he had helped quite a few friends and Broadway stars choose their outfits for red carpet events or even just regular parties.

His job wasn't the only thing in his life that Kurt was content with. He was in a happy relationship with Blaine, his high school sweetheart. They had had a small breakup junior year of college, but had gotten back together not long after. After graduation, they had moved in together to an apartment in New York City, where Kurt began his fashion career, and Blaine worked his way up in the photography industry. Blaine currently worked as a photographer for several fashion magazines, and also had a side business where he took photos at events such as weddings, charity events, and parties. He, much like Kurt, was well known in his trade.

Kurt quite enjoyed the Broadway show he was working on currently. This particular director preferred the actors and actresses to wear different outfits each show, so Kurt was never short of work. However, it was coming to an end in a few days, and Kurt had yet to decide what job offer he'd take next. Maybe he'd take a break and design his own collection. That would be nice.

"Mr. Hummel, sir?"

Kurt broke out of his reverie and glanced at his new assistant, Geoffrey. "How many times have a told you to just call me Kurt?"

"Right, sorry Mr. Kurt."

Sighing, Kurt shook his head. "What is it, Geoffrey?"

"You have a phone call. They said it's important."

Geoffrey handed the phone to Kurt. He took it and held it up to his ear.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Kurt. It's Erin."

"I'm sorry? Who?"

"Erin Braham."

Stunned, Kurt didn't reply. This wasn't really happening. There was no way.

"Kurt? Are you there?"

He shook himself. "Yeah. I am. What- where have you been?"

"Look, I'll answer all your questions later. I'd like to know though; could you and Blaine meet me for dinner on Sunday? I'd really like to talk to both of you. It's important."

"Um, yeah. Sure, that should be fine."

"Great, 7:00 at Gianni's?"

"Sure. See you then."

"Thanks Kurt! Bye!"

He hung up the phone. "What the hell."

Geoffrey took the phone from him. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine."

A million memories came rushing into his head. He and Erin had become fast friends when she allowed him to pick out some of her outfits. Most of the other girls had declined his offer, saying that they had their own fashion sense. Erin had been gracious enough to let him test his ideas on her, which usually ended up looking great. At first, he had been unsure of her opinion of gay people, and therefore was wary about telling her that he was gay, and introducing her to Blaine. However, she proved to be against the typical southern homophobic stereotype and had not treated him any different. Because of that, they had remained close through the two years of college until she vanished. He had been devastated that she had left without saying goodbye. But he had moved on, and now here she was, calling him like it was no big deal. What could she want?

Ugh. He needed a drink. And he needed to call Blaine.

Santana Lopez was exhausted. As an events coordinator for a major PR firm, she was quite busy currently. She had a red carpet event planned for Friday evening, and a social gathering on Saturday to gain publicity for a new author. Two major events in one weekend meant she was working overtime, and spending every moment trying to get each aspect of the events perfect. She barely had time to eat or sleep, let alone spend time with her girlfriend. She was going to be a very happy girl when Sunday rolls around.

She climbed the stairs to her apartment and let herself in. Shutting the door behind her, she called out, "Britt? Where are you babe?"

"In here, San!"

Santana gave a tired smile as she walked into the living room to find Brittany stretching. She bent down and gave her a kiss, and collapsed on the couch. "Are you working out some more tonight?"

"No, they just gave me a list of stretches I have to do every night to make sure I stay awesome."

Brittany was still a dancer, and had now appeared in numerous music videos, movies, and television shows. She had even been chosen to fill in for a back up dancer when one of Lady Gaga's dancers had become sick right before a weekend of New York City shows. Santana was so proud of Brittany, and supported her in everything she did. They too had stayed together through college, though they had had quite a few mishaps where one or the other had imbibed a little too much alcohol, leading to a random hookup neither of them wished to discuss. All the same, they were together now, and that was all that mattered.

"How was work today? Are you gonna sell a lot of carpets on Friday?"

Santana was immensely confused for a second before she realized what Brittany was thinking. "No, Britt, it's a _red carpet_ event, you know, with celebrities? We aren't selling carpets…"

Brittany thought about it, and then nodded. "Okay. That makes sense. Ooh, guess what?" She climbed up on the couch next to Santana, clearly excited about something.

"What is it? I'm too tired to guess."

"Boo you. Well, we have a lunch date on Monday!" Brittany watched her, clearly waiting for her to be as excited as she was.

Santana frowned. Who would they have a lunch date with? "With who?"

Now it was Brittany's turn to frown. "Oh. I don't know. But they knew who I was. And we're meeting them at noon on Monday."

"You didn't think to ask who was calling?" Santana asked, amused.

Brittany shrugged. "No. It's okay, we'll just find out then! It'll be a surprise, and you know I love surprises!"

Santana laughed, and then wrapped her arms around Brittany and kissed her on the forehead. "That I do, Britt. That I do."

Author's Note: Sorry it's a little shorter than the last two. I'm having sort of a mental block on how I want the next couple of chapters to proceed. Hopefully I'll get around it so I can give y'all a couple more chapters this next week! Review and let me know what you think! Thanks!


	6. Chapter 6

Author's Note: Thanks for reading and reviewing! I appreciate your comments! Enjoy!

Saturday morning came quickly for Finn. He had packed up all of his clothes, music, and other essentials, which were waiting in a few bags by the door. All he had left was his laptop and other electronics he was putting into his backpack. He was excited but nervous. Was this going to work at all?

He shrugged to himself and zipped up his laptop case, and stuffed it in his bag. Rachel appeared in the doorway and leaned against the frame, watching him with a sad look. He smiled at her as he wrapped up his power cord, and then frowned when he saw her expression.

"What's wrong?"

"I'm going to miss you."

"I'm going to miss you too, Rach. You know… you can still change your mind."

"I know."

They slipped into silence as Finn packed up the last few things, and hoisted his bag over his shoulder. He walked over to Rachel, and kissed her. They broke apart at the sound of a knock on the door. He sighed and hugged her tightly before heading to open the door. An older man was standing at the door in a suit.

"Mr. Hudson?"

"That's me."

"I'm Winston; I'm here to drive you to Ms. Braham's residence. Can I help you with your bags?"

"Yeah, great! It's just these couple of bags here, thanks! I can grab this last one."

Winston grabbed a few bags and went back to the car to load them. Finn turned back to Rachel who had been standing back a little, watching the conversation. He held out his arms and she basically fell into them, holding him tightly. He held her close and rested his chin on the top of her head.

"Cal l me when you can?"

"I'm not sure how often I'll be allowed to… but I'll try."

"I love you."

"Love you too, Rachel."

They kissed one last time, and Finn grabbed his bag before heading out to the car. Winston helped him put it in the trunk, and then opened the passenger door for him. Settling into his seat as Winston started the car, he looked up at Rachel standing on the steps once more, and waved until she was out of sight.

They arrived at their destination fifteen minutes later. Instead of parking on street, as Finn expected, they turned onto a narrow alleyway. The bottom nine feet or so of the wall was metal, and a brick wall began above that. Winston reached up to the visor and pressed a button. Finn's eyes widened as a very well hidden garage door opened to their left, and Winston directed the car inside. They drove down a slight slope until it leveled out, and turned left to find a rather large space where about 10 different cars were parked.

"Whoa. Cool."

Winston parked the car in a space close to what looked like an elevator, and went to get Finn's luggage. Finn hopped out of the car and glanced around, excited. He went and grabbed a bag from the back and followed Winston to the elevator. They went up one floor, and the doors opened to reveal a smiling Erin.

"Hey Finn! Thanks, Winston. Do you mind taking Finn's stuff to his room?"

"No problem." He turned to Finn. "If you'll leave your things here, I'll take them up."

Finn nodded. "Thanks." He stepped out of the elevator, and the doors closed behind him. He glanced around the modern foyer. There was a nice looking painting on the wall and a rug on the floor, but not much else occupied the simple room. Through the front door he could see the street they had come in on, and a woman passing by walking her dog.

"Want a tour?"

He turned back to Erin and nodded.

"Great. Well this is the foyer. Super exciting, I know. Downstairs you saw the garage, we have eleven different vehicles for our personal use. Let's see… through here is the kitchen."

He followed her down a short hallway which opened into a spacious kitchen with a built-in bar. The cabinets were made of a dark wood with a granite countertop. There was a stack of cookbooks next to the stove, and multiple candles randomly placed. There was also a large dining table that could easily seat the whole glee club. It all looked very nice, but also had a bit of a homey feel. He decided that he liked it. It felt like home.

"So as you can see, we have a really big kitchen. It was necessary with the number of people I'm hoping to have living here. You're welcome to anything you can find to eat. Winston is sort of our cook, driver, and errand runner all in one. He does almost everything except cleaning, which Liza, our maid, does once a week. So, if you ever need anything specific, either let him know or write it down by the fridge and he'll get it for you. He's great."

"Wow, awesome. Yeah, he seem's cool. So like he'll cook and stuff for us?"

"Yes, he'll be cooking most of our meals. In fact, he'll be making lunch in an hour. Just wait until you eat his food – it's absolutely delicious." She shook her head. "Alright. I'm getting off track. Through that doorway is the living room. It's got the basics – TV, cable, sofas, stereo, coffee table, etc. Then down that hall are two important rooms. One is a computer room where we'll be doing a lot of research and surveillance work. We'll probably be in there a lot. The other is sort of a conference room, which will be helpful in planning missions and reporting information to each other. Oh, and there's a bathroom down there too. I guess that's also important."

Finn laughed and nodded. "Missions, huh? This is awesome, we totally sound like spies now. Do you have any cool gadgets? Like a jetpack or something?"

Erin raised an eyebrow, amused. "Well, not much like a jetpack, but we do have a few gadgets. But we'll get to that later. Let me show you the upstairs."

He followed her back into the foyer and up a set of stairs. Upon reaching the landing, he could see a long hallway with multiple doors on either side, and one at the very end. As he walked down the hall, he could see that they were all bedrooms. They reached the last door on the left and stopped. Erin pointed to the glass door on the end.

"I knew we'd have everyone from glee club, and that some of us are still into singing, dancing, and music. So I made sure there was a choir room and dance studio room in the house. You're welcome to use it anytime – there are microphones, stereos, a piano, drums, and a few guitars." She turned back to the last door on the left. "This is your room."

He opened the door and walked in. His bags were sitting by a queen size bed which was sticking out into the middle of the room with bedside tables on either side. There was a large dresser on the opposite wall with a mirror above it. On the adjacent wall, there was a large bay window that looked out onto a back street, and an impressive looking desk sat underneath the window. The room was made of warm shades of red, which he felt was really comforting.

"Yep, this is your room. Feel free to rearrange it in any way you like. Through that door –" Finn looked to a door he didn't notice before, "is your own bathroom and closet. There's a basket in the closet for your dirty clothes and towels. Liza will wash them each week for you. And of course, if you need any toiletries or anything, let Winston know."

She glanced around the room making sure she didn't forget anything. Feeling satisfied with her speech, she looked at his suitcases. "Well, I'll leave you to get settled in. Lunch will be ready in about an hour, but take your time. We're not in a rush today. See you in a bit!"

With that, Erin left, closing the door behind her. Finn sat on the bed, taking a moment to take everything in. This house was wonderful. His room was better than expected, and there were cool amenities too. Maybe he should just become an FBI agent too, and live in a super nice place like this. He shook his head, chuckling to himself, and began to unpack his bags.

An hour later, Finn ambled down the stairs. He could smell the food wafting up the stairs, and was ready to eat. He hesitated when he got to the foyer. There were two hallways, and he couldn't remember which one he had taken earlier. Glancing confusedly between the two, he took the left hallway. A few steps later, and he knew that he'd made the wrong choice. He had found the computer room, which looked super high-tech and awesome. Walking a little further, he found what he guessed was the conference room, and the bathroom. There was another hallway on the right, which he took. This was the right decision, and he ended up in the kitchen. Erin was happily chatting with Winston, who was showing her how to correctly slice a tomato without squishing it. Noticing Finn, Erin smiled.

"Hey! Have a seat, they're almost done. You like burgers, right?"

Finn's mouth watered. "Oh yeah, definitely."

A few minutes later, they each had a burger and fries in front of them. They chewed quietly for a minute, and then Finn broke the silence.

"So. What do we do now? Is anyone else here?"

Erin shook her head. "No. You were the first person I asked. I remembered you as the leader in glee club, so I figured that you would be a huge asset to have when asking everyone else to help."

He nodded. "So now we're gonna ask everyone else? Who's first?"

"Well, we're going to keep it local first. There are four glee members in the city now. Kurt, Blaine, Santana, and Brittany. I've already called each of them. Well, I called Kurt and Brittany. We're meeting Kurt and Blaine tomorrow for dinner, and Brittany and Santana on Monday for lunch."

"Okay. Well then what? I know where a few people live, and they aren't all close together."

"I know. But I have a plan. You'll go with me tomorrow and Monday, and see what I do to explain the situation. Then we're going to split up to get the rest of them." She reached into her pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. "Let's see. You're going to go to Ohio. Artie lives in Columbus, Tina lives in Cincinnati, and Lauren lives in Akron. Then on your way back, you're going to have a stop in Baltimore, where Mike lives. While you're doing that, I'm flying out to California. Mercedes is in Los Angeles, and Sam is in San Francisco. On my way back, I'll stop in Philadelphia to meet with Quinn."

Finn stared. That had almost completely gone over his head. Erin must have been able to tell, because she chuckled and said, "Don't worry; I have your flights booked and everything. I'll make a list of everything you need before you go. You'll be fine!"

He nodded, glad that he wouldn't have to remember every single detail. He wasn't very good at remembering lots of stuff. Then he thought of something. "So, I know that you probably want to wait until you get everyone here. But is there any solid information you have about Puck?"

Erin paused, seeming to think about something. She slowly nodded. "Yes. I do. It will take too long to explain everything right now, but through some searching, I was able to find something that gives me concrete proof that he is alive. Let me go get it."

She hurried out of the kitchen. Finn wondered what she had that was so… airtight. He didn't have to wonder long, for she was back almost instantly, clutching a folder in her hand.

"Now, just a little background. I have lots of leads that point to a certain man who I believe is the one who is keeping Noah hostage. He is well known, and likes to entertain his clients at extravagant parties. Well, I was looking through pictures from a recent party a month ago, and found this picture." She handed him a wide-shot of a large ballroom, filled with people. He looked back up at her, confused at what he was supposed to be seeing. She pointed to a group of people in a back corner. "There. It is an unusual sight. A rather large group of guys in a tight cluster, sneaking around in the back. So I had a friend zoom in and make the image clearer. And I got this." She handed him a second photo, one that had been zoomed in so much as to focus on one face. A face that was undeniably familiar.

"He may not have his Mohawk anymore, but that's him. That's Noah."

The longer he looked at the picture, the more his heart swelled with hope. She had said this was taken a month ago… if that was true and this really was Noah, then he was still alive, and their mission was possible. He was speechless.

"My theory is that they were moving him from one location to another. Maybe a guest got too close to discovering him, I don't know. But they slipped up – they let him be seen. We've got something to go on, and we're gonna get him back."

Finn nodded excitedly. "Yeah. Yeah! Okay, so now what? Let's go plan something!"

Erin laughed. "Well, we really need to get everyone here. They all have different skills to bring to the table that would assist us significantly. So right now, there isn't much to do. But tomorrow, we begin to get everyone together. What I suggest is that you make sure you're all settled, and have a relaxing evening before the hectic life of being a spy sets in."

He nodded, and stood up to go upstairs. He stopped, and turned back to Erin, enveloping her into a hug. She was startled, but then hugged him back. "What's that for?" she asked, chuckling.

"For giving me hope, and giving me faith that he's still alive."

"Well, we have to keep the faith. That's what it's all about."

Author's Note: What did you think? Review and let me know! I'm going on vacation for a week, so I doubt I'll be able to update as much! But I'll try to get a chapter or two in before I get back!


	7. Chapter 7

Author's Note: Sorry I was unable to post any updates on my vacation! The wifi was awful, and the beach was very distracting! Here is another chapter to "Keeping the Faith"! Enjoy!

_Be careful. Don't hit anything. Slowly now. Slow. Wow, these spaces are really small._ Finn gripped the steering wheel of the Mercedes tightly, preparing to ease out of the parking space in the garage. Erin sat in the passenger seat next to him, watching him with a raised eyebrow.

"Everything alright, Finn?"

He nodded. Why the hell had he picked this expensive car to drive?

It was Sunday evening, and they were headed off to meet Blaine and Kurt for dinner. Upon reaching the garage, Erin had suggested that Finn drive, and allowed him to choose which car he wanted to try. He of course had gone for the Mercedes, because it looked, well, awesome. But now he was a little nervous to drive the thing – he didn't want to screw something up on the first day.

They eventually eased out of the parking space, and headed out onto the New York City streets. On the way, Erin gave Finn a bit of prep before dinner.

"Now, pay attention to the way I word things, and how I give them the information. It'll help you when you talk to the others on your own. You can't be demanding, or they'll be turned off. You gotta let them know that we need their help, but that we aren't forcing them into anything. And stress the fact that they will be reimbursed. That'll be very helpful."

"I got it. I'll just follow your lead."

To be honest, Finn wasn't nervous to see Kurt and Blaine. He had seen them recently at one of Rachel's shows, and had seen them over the summer for a family vacation. However, he could tell that Erin was a bit apprehensive about meeting with them. She kept biting her nails and staring out the window.

"Hey – this meeting won't be bad."

She glanced at him, slightly confused. "Huh?"

"You're nervous, I can tell. You shouldn't be. Kurt was one of the most understanding members of the glee club after you left. I think he understood because of what he went through with his mom. So don't be too anxious about seeing him. He'll forgive you."

Erin let out a slight breath that she hadn't realized she had been holding. She nodded and resumed looking out the window, but didn't bite her nails again.

They arrived at the restaurant not long after, and were informed that the rest of their party had already been seated. They followed the hostess to their table, where Kurt and Blaine had their backs to the approaching group. Deciding to play a small prank on his half-brother, Finn halted Erin's movements toward the table and approached the back of Kurt's and Blaine's chairs. He glanced back at Erin and gestured to her with his hands, and she smirked, figuring out what he wanted to do.

His hands suddenly were in front of the two men's eyes, rendering them momentarily sightless. Erin hurried forward and spoke between them. "Guess who?"

Having jumped a little in their seats, Kurt and Blaine relaxed, smiling. Kurt laughed and said, "Oh Erin, you must have forgotten that you told me who we were meeting. Of course I know it's you."

By this time, Erin had moved around the table, and was standing across from them, beaming. Finn lifted his hands, and Kurt and Blaine blinked before sending Erin a confused look; there was no way she could have gotten around the table that quickly.

"I brought you a surprise guest!"

Kurt turned around and was immediately enveloped into a hug by Finn. Laughing, Kurt hugged him back and moved out of the way for Finn to shake Blaine's hand and pull him into a hug too. After greeting each other sufficiently, they all sat down to discuss the topic at hand.

"Finn, it's great to see you." He seemed to notice something. "Is everything okay… with Rachel?" Kurt asked, glancing between the two.

Finn's brow furrowed in confusion. Why wouldn't Rachel be okay? Then it hit him, just as Erin began to speak.

"Oh, no, no. Finn and I aren't – no. He's actually helping me on a project. Which is why I wanted to meet with you guys, too."

She began to explain where she had gone when she disappeared, and what she was doing now. Finn couldn't help himself – he spaced out, and lost focus. He had heard it all before, it was the exact same information that Erin had given him when they had met up. He had been staring at woman trying to decide if her face was natural or not for a few minutes when he heard something that drew him back into the conversation.

"And that's why I need your help. Both of you. As I said, you'll be completely reimb-"

Kurt waved his hand. "Yes, yes. Completely reimbursed, I got it. I understand what you're asking, but I don't quite get how you're asking me yet."

Erin shook her head, puzzled. "I don't understand."

Finn didn't understand either. What did Kurt mean? Blaine seemed confused too, raising an eyebrow at Kurt as if it were obvious what Erin was asking.

"What I mean is you seem to be approaching this as if you were a recruiter, my future employer. You're just trying to hire me. If that's the case, then the answer is no."

Erin's eyes widened, and her shoulders slumped slightly. She looked down at the table for a second and then back up into Kurt's eyes. "I'm not asking as an employer."

"Then ask me like you were my friend."

Finn could see something break in Erin's eyes. She took a deep breath, and shifted her eyes from Kurt to Blaine to Kurt again. "Kurt, Blaine… please. I need your help to find Noah. I have to get him back."

There was a desperation in her voice that Finn could feel. This wasn't Erin being factual and straightforward about the task ahead – this was her showing her emotion, appealing to her friends for help. Kurt could feel it too, because he seemed slightly taken aback by the emotion in her voice. Blaine looked over and placed a hand on Kurt's.

"I think I speak for both of us when I say that we need time to think about it. Why don't we call you when we decide?"

Erin nodded numbly, and fumbled for her card. She passed it across the table to the men, and thanked them for meeting with them. After paying the bill, she quickly walked out, followed closely by Finn who gave Blaine and Kurt quick hugs goodbye. Catching up to her outside, he matched his pace with her swift gait.

"Hey, what's wrong? I thought that went okay. And I learned how to approach the topic with the others."

She sighed and slumped against the side of the building. "I don't know. I guess I try to keep a lot of my emotion inside when it comes to this. I don't want my personal stuff getting in the way of finding Noah. I think when Kurt asked me to approach him as a friend, it kind of showed me how numb I've become to what I feel sometimes. It reminded me of how I really feel about this whole thing."

"You know, you don't have to be strong all the time. It's okay to let some emotion out. You can't keep everything locked up, you might blow up or something."

Erin laughed softly. "I guess you're right. I realize it now, after what Kurt said. I need to maybe approach this a different way. Not be so much a recruiter rather than a friend."

She pushed off the wall, and they headed back to the car. There was a renewed purpose in Erin's step. "I guess now I have to rethink how I'm going to convince Santana and Brittany tomorrow. I don't think I'll have to change much, Santana would definitely be interested in what was in it for her. But I'll need to open up a bit to get Brittany too. Hmm. This shouldn't be too bad."

Finn walked along with her, deciding to just nod along with what she said. There was too much strategy going on to get his head around. He could feel a headache forming, which always happened when he tried to think too hard. He sighed, wishing he had an Advil to take. Instead, he followed Erin back to the car, listening to her talk to herself the whole way home.

The next morning they found themselves once again headed out to meet old friends. Erin was driving this time, and she had picked the Tahoe. It was rather large, and Finn felt like they could run over anyone they wanted. Maybe she needed to feel a little powerful before this meeting. He could tell she was still a little shaken by her and Kurt's exchange the night before. Whatever her motive was, it worked because she was in a much better mood by the time they reached the restaurant.

They had arrived before Brittany and Santana, so they settled themselves at a table away from the door. A waitress took their drink orders, and Finn couldn't help but notice that this was a rather similar setting to his own meeting with Erin.

The door jingled open and they looked up to see Santana and Brittany enter the restaurant, looking around curiously. Finn waved, and Brittany bounded over, beaming, while Santana followed behind her cautiously. She looked apprehensive when she saw Finn, and when she caught a glimpse of Erin, her expression turned slightly angry.

Brittany, however, had no reservations. "Finn! Hi! I haven't seen you in forever!" She hugged him and turned to Erin. "You're not Rachel. Wait… Erin?"

Erin nodded, grinning. Brittany squealed and leapt forward, wrapping her arms around Erin in a tight squeeze. "Oh my gosh, oh my gosh! I've missed you so much! Everyone said you were gone for good but I told them you'd come back, didn't I San?" She hardly looked at Santana, who was openly glaring at Erin. Brittany continued to babble until Erin laughed and invited them to sit down.

Brittany took the seat across from Erin immediately and leaned forward, ready to listen. Santana sunk into her seat much more slowly, never taking her eyes off of Erin.

"When did you come back? Do you live here? Are you married? Santana and I live together, isn't that awesome? I'm a dancer, are you a teacher? I – "

Santana cut Brittany off. "Britt. Stop." Brittany fell silent at once, confused at Santana's tone. Santana narrowed her eyes at Erin. "Why are you here? What the hell do you want?"

Erin was prepared for her attitude, it seemed. She quickly repeated the story and explanation that she had told the others. When she mentioned that she needed Brittany and Santana's help to find Puck, she received two different reactions.

Brittany beamed and began jumping up and down in her seat slightly. "That's so cool! We get to be spies! Oh, San, let's do it!" She turned to Santana. Seeing her expression, Brittany calmed and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Santana?"

Santana, on the other hand, was furious. How dare Erin come back after all this time and just think that they could be friends again, that they would just help her with whatever damn thing she needed? Where the hell was she when they all dealt with the loss of Puck? She understood how upsetting that was for her, she really did, but completely abandoning everyone in that moment? No. It was not going to be that easily forgiven.

Erin could see something forming in Santana's eyes. She needed to say something. "Santana… I'm sorry. I know what I did was wrong. I shouldn't have left everyone like that, but I had to do it."

"No, you didn't. You could have stayed with us and we would have supported you in everything you did. Instead, we had to go through the experience of losing TWO of our close friends. Not just Puck, but you too. You made it that much harder on everyone else to move on. If one of the strongest in our group couldn't even do it, what made us think that we could? You leaving was one of the reasons the group fell apart. Maybe if you had stayed, we could have all stayed together and worked through the situation!"

There was a flash of hurt and guilt on Erin's face. All of her strategy seemed to go out the window.

Brittany had a slightly shocked look on her face. "Santana, stop. That's mean."

Santana brushed the comment off. "I don't care. It's true, and she deserves it."

Finn felt like he needed to say something. "Look Santana, I know it wasn't an ideal situation back then, but – "

"What if it was Brittany?"

They all looked at Erin. "What?" Santana asked, confused.

Erin took a breath. "What if it had been Brittany that had been kidnapped? What would YOU have done?"

Santana's eyes widened as she thought about it. There was no life without Brittany; she had already come to that conclusion. She thought about the glee club without Brittany. No, there wouldn't be a glee club. Every single face would have reminded Santana of her. Everyone would try to remember, and try to move on. It would have been suffocating to receive the sympathetic glances, the pitying condolences. She came to the realization that she would have done just what Erin had done – run away.

Erin could see the comprehension in Santana's expression. "So you see why I did what I did."

Santana nodded slightly and said nothing, refusing to meet Erin's eyes. Brittany grabbed Santana's hand and held on tightly.

After a few moments of silence, Finn spoke. "I know it's a lot to ask of you guys. But we'd really like you to help us."

Brittany immediately nodded. "I'm going to do it." Santana opened her mouth to argue. "No, Santana. Friends don't let friends down. I understand if you don't want to do it, but I want to. Puck was cool, and Erin is still my friend. We gotta try. And I get to be a spy!" She tugged on Santana's hand. "Wouldn't that be fun?"

Santana stared at Brittany for a minute, then shifted her gaze to Finn, and finally to Erin. She took a deep breath. "Well… I can't leave Brittany. I guess… I guess I'm in too."

Erin and Finn simultaneously smiled in relief.

"Oh, thank you so much! You're welcome to move in anytime after next Monday. Just call me whenever you're ready!" Erin said.

They got up to leave, and exchanged hugs. Erin hesitated when she reached Santana. "Thank you for doing this. You have no idea how much it means to me," she said sincerely.

Santana looked at Brittany, who was happily chatting with Finn, and then back at Erin. She gave a tentative smile.

"Yeah, I think I do."

Author's Note: What do you think? I wrote this while fighting a writer's block, so hopefully it isn't too terrible. I got the idea for the exchange between Kurt and Erin from an episode of CSI. Please review and let me know your thoughts! Thanks for reading!


	8. Chapter 8

Author's Note: Sorry the update took so long. I just moved back to school, so everything has been really crazy. Enjoy! Warning for language.

"Flight 425 to Cincinnati will begin boarding in twenty minutes."

Finn glanced up at the clock and took a sip of his soda. He was waiting in the airport Wednesday morning ready to fly to Ohio to begin talking to the rest of the glee members. He was excited to see everyone, but anxious. He wanted to do a good job. The more people who could help, the better. Feeling the familiar vibration of his phone, he reached into his pocket to answer it.

"Hello?"

"Finn, it's Erin. I've got good news!"

"Have you already talked to Mercedes?"

"Wha- no… Finn, there's no possible way I could have already flown to California, let alone talked to Mercedes."

"Oh. Right. Sorry, go on."

"Kurt and Blaine called, they're in."

"No way! That's great news!"

"Yeah, they're moving in Monday. But I gotta go, my flight is boarding. I just wanted to let you know. I'll call you later when I'm in Los Angeles."

He hung up, elated at the news of two more people deciding to help. So far they had six people – Erin, Kurt, Blaine, Santana, Brittany, and himself. They could do this, they could pull this off. Puck would be back with them in no time. Finn grabbed the phone, wanting to call the one person he always shared good news with.

His fingers froze just before he pressed the send button. He looked down at Rachel's cell number apprehensively, trying to decide whether it would be okay to call her. After a few minutes him battling with himself, he decided to call her but be vague and not tell her too much. It had only been a few days since he had spoken to her, but it seemed like forever.

She picked up on the first ring. "Finn?"

"Hey, babe."

"Where are you? What are you doing? I've missed you so much."

"Um, I'm at the airport. I'm going to, er, Ohio. I've missed you too."

"Ohio? Why?"

"I- look Rach, I really can't tell you. I'm probably not even supposed to be calling you, but I had to talk to you."

He heard her sigh over the phone. "Alright. Sorry."

"It's okay. But yeah, I'm going to Ohio. I'll be back in a few days." He heard the first call for his plane to board. "Look, I gotta go, my plane is boarding. But I love you so much, Rachel. I'll try to talk to you soon."

"Okay. I love you too. And Finn? Good luck. Tell Erin too."

He hastily hung up and turned his phone off as his section was called. He got in line to board the plane, ready to begin his first mission with a renewed vigor.

Erin stepped out of the hotel lobby into the sunlight, squinting into the brightness. She pulled her sunglasses out of her bag, and hailed a cab. Giving the driver the address she had looked up before arriving in Los Angeles, she settled into the backseat for the short drive. She was exhausted, and the time difference was doing nothing to help her. However, she had to meet with Mercedes today to stay on schedule. After talking to Mercedes, she was going to spend the night and drive to San Francisco the next morning. She would talk to Sam, and then fly home via Philadelphia to talk to Quinn. It was going to be an exhausting few days, but would be worthwhile if everything worked out.

Shortly, they pulled up in front of a rather plain looking building with large music notes on the doors. Erin paid the driver and entered the building. Her eyes adjusted to the indoor lights and she spotted a receptionist desk.

"May I help you?"

Erin nodded. "I'm here to see Mercedes Jones."

The receptionist gave her an appraising glance, and checked her computer. "Normally Ms. Jones doesn't see random people, but you're lucky. She's free right now, and is in a rather good mood since they signed that new artist Camille. I'll go see if she'll talk to you."

Erin rolled her eyes at being called a random person as the receptionist left through a back door. If only she knew the whole story…

A few minutes later she was back, and told Erin to follow her. She was led down a long hallway with doors on either side. They stopped at one that said "Studio 4" and entered. Mercedes was sitting at a soundboard with a man, and they were listening to a woman sing in the soundproof recording booth. Mercedes was nodding along to the beat, listening intently. Soon the song was over, and she pressed a button so the girl inside could hear her.

"Camille, that was great, but I think we need to practice those runs a little more. Take a break, honey. We'll finish later."

As the man and Camille left, the receptionist walked over to Mercedes. "Ms. Jones? Here is the girl I was telling you about."

Mercedes turned and looked directly at Erin, who smiled. It took her a second, but she realized who Erin was and beamed.

"Well hell, I never thought I'd see your face again! Come here girl, give me a hug!"

Erin soon found herself being squeezed by a laughing Mercedes. The receptionist looked on, extremely confused, and finally let herself out of the room. After hugging for a few minutes, Mercedes finally sat down at a table in the studio, inviting Erin to sit too. Leaning back in her chair, Mercedes surveyed her for a minute.

"You look thin, girl. Want something to eat?"

Erin shook her head. "No, I'm okay, thanks. I'm surprised you aren't yelling at me for disappearing."

"Oh, please. I got over that. I understood. I'm just glad you're back! You are back, right? You ain't gonna run off again are you?"

"No, no. I'm not. In fact, if you're willing, I'll be able to see you a whole lot more."

Mercedes' expression shifted from confused to surprised to impassive as Erin told her about Puck. As she finished, Erin couldn't help but wonder what Mercedes was going to say next. Her expression gave nothing away as she looked at Erin. All of a sudden, she turned and pressed a button on the soundboard. The intercom crackled and Mercedes spoke.

"Emily. Call Carl. Tell him to start packing up my stuff. I'm going out of town for an unspecified amount of time. Book me a flight to New York City on Monday. And I don't want coach. First-class, unlike last time. Use my frequent flier miles if you need too. Call Rupert – he'll be taking over while I'm gone. Thanks." She took her hand off the button and turned back to Erin, smiling. "Being a well-known music producer has its perks."

Erin's mouth hung open slightly and she was sure she looked fairly stupid. "Wait, so are you doing it?"

"Hell to the yeah. We gotta get your man back, girl. And again, since I run this place, I can do what I want."

"Oh my god, thank you, thank you, thank you!" She jumped up and hugged Mercedes. "You are amazing! I didn't even really have to try to convince you!"

"I know. I'm happy to do it. But right now, I have another session to attend to. So scoot along now. I'll see you in New York on Monday."

After saying a final goodbye, Erin left the studio happily. Things were going swimmingly. Hopefully Sam and Quinn would prove to be easily persuaded as well. Finn came to her mind, and she decided to give him a call and see how he was doing. He was supposed to have already talked to Tina, and should be driving to Columbus now.

"Hello!" Music was blasting in the background – was that Lady Gaga?

"Uh, hey Finn. I was just calling to see how it went with Tina today. Are you listening to Lady Gaga?"

The volume of the music dropped suddenly. "Yeah, sorry. I was just reminiscing about glee club a little bit. I think it went well with Tina. Did you know she's a middle school chorus teacher? You probably did, you know everything. But she seemed frustrated, like she didn't like her job. She definitely acted interested in listening to the idea."

Erin nodded to herself. She had known Tina's job, but hadn't known that Tina was frustrated with it. "Well that's good news. Mercedes is in too, it hardly took any persuasion. She'll fly in Monday."

"Awesome! Tina said she'd call. I'll let you know when she does. I'm almost to Columbus."

"Okay. I just wanted to see how it went. Good luck with Artie. I'll talk to you tomorrow."

After hanging up, she hailed a cab and headed back to her hotel. She needed to rest up – she had a long drive to San Francisco tomorrow, and she didn't want to be tired when she saw Sam. When she paid for her fare, a picture of her and Noah fell out of her wallet. She picked it up as the cab drove away. As she looked at the photo, one of them at a lake, hope swelled in her heart.

"We're gonna find you, baby. Just hold on a little longer."

Bright and early the next morning, Erin loaded her things into a rental car and began the drive to San Francisco. The drive was longer than she would have preferred, but she didn't really feel like flying such a short distance. She spent the time listening to her favorite music, watching the scenery, and thinking about the task at hand.

Sooner than she expected, she arrived in San Francsico. She passed cable cars and saw the Golden Gate Bridge as she followed the directions to Sam's last known address. He was a freelance journalist, and had spent time over the years in Seattle, Chicago, Washington, D.C. and Phoenix before ending up in San Francisco. Erin hoped that he hadn't moved without her knowledge – it was hard enough to track him down the first time.

Pulling up to the dingy apartment complex where he lived, she surveyed the area. The complex was dirty and cheap looking, with graffiti painted on some of the walls. The first thought that ran through Erin's mind when she saw it was_ Ew_. She carefully got out of her car and grabbed her bag, locking the car behind her. She nervously climbed the stairs to apartment 3F. After timidly knocking on the door, she heard a noise and the door opened before her.

Sam leaned against the doorframe, taking a swig of beer from the bottle in his hand. He was wearing a ragged black tshirt and holey jeans. His blonde hair was badly mussed, and he looked like he hadn't slept in days. Behind him, she could see clothes and papers strewn about the living room. Her attention turned back to him when he cleared his throat.

"The hell do you want? I'm not buying anything."

Erin let out a breath. This wasn't really what she had been expecting. "Hey, Sam. Remember me? Erin Braham."

Sam's face flashed with recognition and he pushed off the doorframe. Leaning so uncomfortably close to her face that she took a step back, he laughed. "No shit, it sure is. And here I was about to call the damn cops. We've got too many thieving hookers in this area." He stepped back and gestured with his beer. "Come on in, then."

Even though she didn't want to, she stepped into the apartment. It was even dingier and dirtier on the inside. Sam pointed to a stained couch and told her to sit down, offering her a drink. She declined, and moved a pile of clothes to the coffee table, settling herself on the couch. Sam reclined across from her in a well-worn armchair, sipping his beer. He watched her for a few seconds and finally broke the silence. "How the fuck did you find me?"

She shrugged. "I followed some of your articles. Not too hard to find you when I knew what city you were in." This was a lie – it had been a lot harder than that.

He nodded, thinking. "So that's the how. Now, why the fuck did you want to find me? I was perfectly happy keeping out of everyone's lives."

Happy? He didn't look particularly happy. She knew that his family had been homeless part of his high school career. However, even then, he had kept strong and happy through glee club. Now he just seemed run-down, and looked like he was at the end of his rope. Glee had kept him going in high school, and from what she knew, he had pushed them all away over the years. That shouldn't make him happy.

"I'm sure you were. But I actually need you for something." She launched into her explanation. He sat through it silently, taking occasional sips of beer. As soon as she was done, he looked her in the eyes.

"You're serious?"

She nodded.

"You sure you're not fucking with me?"

"No."

He suddenly stood and set his beer on the table. He hurried out of the room, leaving Erin on the couch alone. She wasn't sure what to do, so she fidgeted for a few minutes, and then called out, "Sam?"

"Just a second!" She heard the sound of a zipper zipping up, and he was back in the room, duffel bag in hand.

"Wha-"

"Can you grab all the papers in here and stack them up? It doesn't matter what order."

Erin nodded and began stacking papers as Sam raced around the room gathering personal objects and clothes, and stuffed them into either the duffel bag or a backpack by the couch. He took the papers from Erin and stuffed them into the backpack as well. Soon he was done, and swept through the few rooms to make sure nothing personal was left behind. He collapsed on the couch next to Erin and took one final sip of his beer.

"Um. Can I ask what that was?"

He turned his head toward her. "I'm going with you."

Erin let out a sound of disbelief. "Now?"

"Yeah. I'm a few months behind on my rent – they're gonna evict me this weekend. It'll be better to be gone by then. So I thought I'd just come along with you now. I don't have much stuff. There's nothing left for me in San Francisco. So why not?"

She stared at him for a moment, eyebrows raised. Then she shook her head. "Alright, I guess. Fine. I'll get you a seat on my flight home. But we have to stop in Philadelphia first."

Sam shrugged. "That's cool."

"Okay, then. Are you good to go? We may be able to get an early flight tonight."

He nodded, and then grabbed a piece of paper. He scribbled something on it and headed to the door with his bags. When Erin exited the apartment after him, he stuck the note to the door, locked it, and tossed the keys into the bushes. As he headed towards the parking lot, Erin read "Fuck you Baroni" on the note. She figured that was the landlord, and decided not to ask.

As they walked out to the car, she could see that Sam had a new spring in his step. He had a slight smile on his face, and didn't seem as tired as before. Maybe this mission would do more than just get Puck back. Maybe it would help to mend the broken lives and relationships of the glee club. One could only hope, right?


	9. Chapter 9

Author's Note: Phew, sorry about that ridiculously long hiatus. I had so much going on, and I sort of forgot about the story. But now that I started writing another one, I thought I'd pick this one back up. Enjoy!

-.-.-.-.-.-

"Bye, Hudson. See you in New York."

Finn waved and exited the wrestling facility where Lauren was a coach. Upon approaching her with the idea, Lauren had almost immediately agreed to the plan because of her past relationship with Puck. Which was good, because Finn was kind of intimidated by Lauren, and didn't know if he'd be good at convincing her.

It had been a long couple of days for him. It was only Saturday, but he felt like it had been weeks since he'd left New York. Thursday, he had been in Cincinnati talking to Tina, and had driven to Columbus where he spent the night. The next morning, he had talked to Artie, a computer programmer, and then driven to Akron for the night. This morning, he had talked to Lauren, who had given him his answer in the gruff way that she normally spoke. Now that that was finished, he had to catch a flight to Baltimore to talk to Mike, who was a dance instructor at the Baltimore School of the Arts.

On the way to the airport, he got a call from Tina, who told him that she would help, and would arrive on Wednesday. Then while sitting at the airport, he got a text from Artie saying that he was in, and would arrive on Thursday. Finn felt like he was on top of the world. All of his friends were finally going to come back together to help Puck. He automatically scrolled through his phone to Rachel's cell number, about to call her. He hesitated, thinking maybe he could convince her to join the mission as well. But he knew it was no good. Her career was too important to leave, even for a month or so.

He sighed and shut off his phone, stifling the urge to call her. He turned his mind to thinking about how to convince Mike to help, and pushed Rachel out of his mind.

-.-.-.-.-.-

"Nurse Fabray to room 624 please. Nurse Fabray to room 624."

Quinn glanced up at the loudspeaker before grabbing her clipboard and hurrying to one of her favorite patient's room. After graduating from McKinley, she had gone on to college and became a nurse with focus in pediatric oncology. Her specialization had led her to one of the best pediatric cancer care hospitals in the nation – The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. She was good with kids and loved her job. The hardest part was when one of her patients lost their battles – it was always heartbreaking, and Quinn knew she'd never forget each and every one of her patients.

She knocked on the doorframe of room 624 before striding in. "Hello Miss Olivia, what can I do for you today?"

Olivia, the small girl around 8 years old was lying in her bed with her mother at her side. She had her arms crossed, and was most certainly pouting. Her mother rolled her eyes and said, "She wouldn't take her shot from the other nurse. She specifically asked for you, and threw a fit until we called for you. I'm sorry to distract you from your other work! You are her favorite."

Quinn grinned and shook her head. "It's not a problem!" She walked over to Olivia's bed and read her chart, and glanced at the tray containing the syringe she was supposed to give to her. "Now that I'm here, will you let me give you your shot? It won't hurt a bit!"

Olivia nodded slowly and scanned her up and down. "Did you bring Scarfy?"

Quinn reached into the pocket of her scrubs and pulled out the raggedy stuffed dog with a blue scarf around its neck. "I sure did! How about you hold on to him for me while we do this, ok?" She handed the dog to Olivia and prepared the syringe. "Okay, on three, ready?"

Olivia nodded, eyes fixed on the stuffed dog. She smoothed his scarf and paid no attention to Quinn.

"One, two –" Quinn injected the medicine in Olivia's arm. "Three! All done, you did a great job!"

Quinn chatted with Olivia's mom while she cleaned up the syringe. She began to leave and Olivia shouted, "Wait! Don't forget Scarfy!"

She paused, and smiled. "Why don't you keep Scarfy for the weekend? I know you have surgery tomorrow, and he can keep you company since I won't be here this weekend. How does that sound?"

Olivia shot her a brilliant smile and nodded, waving goodbye to her favorite nurse. Quinn waved and walked back down the hall to check out, since her shift was over for the day. She whistled as she turned in her clipboard and signed her hours sheet. Just as she was grabbing her coat to leave, her pager beeped. Checking it, she saw that someone was requesting to see her in the main lobby of the hospital. She sighed, ready to leave, but headed down to the lobby anyway.

Upon arriving in the lobby, she greeted the receptionist, who pointed her towards two people sitting on a couch nearby. Their backs were to her, so she put a smile on her face and went over to see what they wanted. She walked around in front of them, and stopped short. They glanced up at her and stood up, smiling. Quinn gasped and threw her arms around both of them.

"Oh, my God! Sam! Erin! This is crazy! What are you guys doing here? I've missed you so much!"

Sam was startled but hugged her back all the same. Erin grinned happily as she was embraced by her friend. Quinn pulled back and looked at both of them.

"Why are you here? I didn't think either of you were near Philadelphia… Well, I had no idea where you were, Erin. But Sam, I thought you were in Chicago."

"San Francisco, actually. I was in Chicago a couple years ago."

"Well that's no closer. What's going on?"

"Do you mind grabbing a bite to eat with us? I can explain the situation once we've settled down," Erin said.

Quinn hesitated and then nodded. She started out the door leading her friends behind her. "Come on, I know just the place!"

-.-.-.-.-.-

"So you're telling me you think all of us are going to be able to band together to get Puck back? Seriously?" Quinn set down her chopsticks and stared at Erin.

Erin nodded. "We all have different skills that would be useful for this mission. We're getting close to finding him, I just need the manpower. I can't trust anyone else: who better to work with than close friends?"

Quinn raised an eyebrow. "And you think this is a good idea?" she directed towards Sam, who was shoveling shrimp fried rice into his mouth.

Sam swallowed and shrugged. "I think it could work. And there was nothing left for me in San Francisco, so why not try to start over in New York?"

"Yes but see unlike you, I have a good life here – a home, a career. What makes you think I can just up and leave it all behind?"

"It will all be here when the mission is over. Your job will still be waiting for you, and your home will be taken care of," Erin answered.

"Yeah, and we get paid. Right, you – you said we get paid, didn't you?" Sam looked to Erin uncertainly, making sure he wasn't giving false information.

Erin nodded. "Yes, you'll be fully reimbursed for your time and effort. We'll take care of everything; I just need you to say yes."

Quinn took a deep breath and glanced between the two hopeful faces across from her. She weighed her options in her head. She could go back to her life, ignoring this small interruption, and continue on with her day to day work. Or, she could take hold of an interesting opportunity that involved lots of old friends, and probably a bit of danger as well. Sure, she would miss her patients, but everyone needed a break every now and then didn't they?

She let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. Covering her face up with her hands, she finally informed them, "Okay… I'm in."

-.-.-.-.-.-

Finn checked his watch. 3:58, just a few minutes before the Sunday ballet skills class ended at the Baltimore School for the Arts. He walked down the hallway that the receptionist has pointed him towards, looking for classroom 32A. Finding it, he stopped outside the open door and watched the end of the class.

"Lift your leg up a little higher, Brianna. Valerie, point your toes. Uh, hands down Rob. That's too high to hold her for a lift."

Mike Chang walked around the classroom correcting his students' techniques and giving out pointers. Suddenly, the bell signaling the end of class rang. "All right! Great job today, remember to sign the sheet before you leave to make sure you get credit for this weekend class! Practice, practice, practice!"

Finn waited until the last student had filtered out of the class before stuffing his hands in his pockets and entering the room. Mike heard him walking and turned around. He grinned at Finn, looking happy to see him but not surprised as most of the others had. Nevertheless, Mike hurried over to hug him.

"Finn! How are you doing man? I figured I'd be seeing you soon. You look great!"

"Uh, thanks Mike. Wait – what do you mean you thought you'd see me soon? How'd you know I was coming?"

Mike rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Well, I actually got a call yesterday from Tina. Really out of the blue, I haven't talked to her in months. She told me you had come by and talked to her about the mission to find Puck – yeah she kind of explained it all to me. She told me that you were going to all of the glee club members to ask for help."

"Huh. Well, yeah, I'm here to ask you for help. I can give you some more information-"

"No need! Tina told me everything you told her. And I'm so there. It sounds really awesome, and I want to help. I'm thinking of flying in on Thursday. Is that alright?"

"Yeah, man of course. Wow… that made my job a whole lot easier."

Mike laughed. "No problem. Hey, you want to grab a drink and catch up? It's a little early, but who cares?"

Finn grinned. "I'd love to, but I actually have a flight to catch back to New York. But rain check on the drink, we'll get one when I see you later this week. Sound good?"

"Yeah man, definitely. Can't wait to see the rest of the gang too!"

They fist-bumped, and Finn left Mike to finish packing up his things. Getting back in his rental car, he called Erin before heading to the airport.

"Mike's in. That's everyone I've talked to. They're all in!"

"Finn, that's fantastic! We've just landed in New York. We met with Quinn yesterday, and she's in too!"

"We? Who's we?"

"Oh, right. Sam's with me. He wanted to leave immediately, so I just brought him back with me from San Francisco."

"Oh, cool. Well, I'm headed to the airport now; I'll see you later tonight."

"Sounds good! And Finn, thank you so, so much. This is amazing."

As he hung up, everything hit him all at once. All of the glee members were going to be back together to find Puck. Everyone he hadn't seen in months or even years was coming back together to rescue their friend. And it just might work out.


End file.
